23. If your engineer uses a computer, make sure it is suitable for the job. Check all of the memory and processing specs in advance of any crucial operations. This will save you several trips to Staples later.

24. If a computer is involved anywhere in the audio-processing chain (and it probably will be) make sure adequate backups are made to CDR before any mastering begins. You will need those virgin files in the event your software plug-ins corrupt the files, or if the computer crashes.

25. Get schedule commitments in writing from all personnel. Make it clear to them that they are working for you, even if you are working on some basis of a trade, or discount pricing. Regardless, they should still be committed to staying up until midnight, if necessary. (See next point.)

26. Do not – repeat – DO NOT – perform a 12-hour mastering marathon and believe that you have caught everything. You will miss something and you will need to fix it later.

27. Do not trust meters, read-outs, computer monitors or gauges. Trust your ears – music is heard, not seen.

28. When working with a graphic designer, provide as many editing suggestions as you can at once. Avoid multiple changes, or multiple messages about small changes. This will save you time and money.

29. If you plan on printing exact track times in the CD art, your entire project will be held up by the audio master that contains those track times. Plan accordingly so that all of the other design elements are in place, so that as the master is completed, the track times can be dropped in.

30. Use the “disc at once” setting when burning your CD and make sure the silence between songs is exactly the way you want it. Don’t use “Track at once” because it will add 2 seconds to the end of everything and will destroy the flow.

31. Understand that you will not have any semblance of a “normal” life while you are working on the project. In fact, forget about having a life of your own entirely. Get used to anxiety, tunnel-vision, insomnia and a whole host of other “professional challenges”.

“Doesn’t it seem like making an album should only take this amount of time and money but it never works out that way. The time and $ amount always triple. No wonder musicians say the hell with it and become sales clerks.”